


Mountains Beyond Mountains

by WiltingRain



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: ASL, Leonard Snart knows ASL, Multi, Mute Barry, PTSD, Team Arrow is only a lil bit, WTF, so does Oliver a lil bit, the slash is eventual
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-10
Updated: 2016-01-12
Packaged: 2018-05-05 22:29:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5392634
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WiltingRain/pseuds/WiltingRain
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU Where Barry is still the Flash, but mute, and finds friends and lovers in unexpected places.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Sooo kinda nervous to post this because the Flash fandom has fucking amazing writers. 
> 
> If you're fuzzy at all on Barry's muteness there's an AN at the end.

 

Barry was not always like this.

 

When he was younger, Barry was always talking about something or other; a new classmate, or a project he was doing in class. Talking was his favorite pass time, even when it got him in trouble. It only encouraged him more. Henry was a doctor, though, and he took good care of his son, stitching up cuts and icing bruises--what any good father would do.

 

And then the man in the lightning had come, and he had disrupted that happy, perfect lifestyle.

Barry had awoken to loud bursts of air, and his mother’s scream. He rushed down the stairs, screaming for his mother in confusion and fear, hoping, _praying_ \---but he was too late. His own scream for his mother would be the last he spoke for a long, long time.

 

His father was sentenced.

Joe took him in.

Barry visited Henry every week, even when Joe discouraged him. He never said anything, but sometimes he would cry, and place a small, quivering hand to the glass, watching his father do the same with sad, weary eyes.

 

Barry learns sign language that summer. Joe and Iris do as well, because Barry is stubborn, and they need to be able to relate. Or, that’s what the therapist says. So they all learn it together, and Joe alerts his seventh grade teacher that he’s mute, because Barry refuses the offer to tell the teacher his traumas. He does just fine, excelling at Science and Math. He still brings home bruises. Joe tries to get him to talk, but Barry just shakes his head and waves him off. 

 

He and Iris get close, and once in awhile, she can make him laugh, a sad, broken sound from misuse. She smiles at him anyway when he forcibly makes himself stop, because he hates the sound, _hates_ that he can even laugh, because he’s only just turned 12 and his mother has been dead less than a year. Just like before, he still comes home with cuts and scrapes, and just as before, he refuses to tell. That Christmas, Barry falls in love with Iris. 

 

Barry still comes home with bruises in Freshman year of Highschool, but he smiles a little more. He’s met people that know ASL, and he invites them over sometimes. He laughs more often now, with Iris and on rare occasions with Joe. It’s still a hollow sound, and still cracks. But he doesn’t make himself stop anymore.

 

He doesn’t stop coming home with bruises until Junior year, when he becomes friends with one of the more popular kids. It was completely by accident, the guy knocking Barry over in the hall, but the man had surprised Barry by signing an apology. They didn’t hang out too often, but the kid’s status kept the bullies away from Barry, and he was grateful.

 

College is a breeze, even as a mute. People care less about what’s going on in other people’s lives, and he never has to worry about getting beaten on or teased for his refusal to speak. Life goes on, he makes a few acquaintances, and he graduates. He wanted to be an officer at first, a detective. But he talks to Joe, and it turns out no matter how good you are, you need to use your voice to be an officer. Barry decides on forensics instead. He’s good at observing because he doesn’t have to speak. He can watch and listen, and doesn’t have to worry about an immediate response, if he needs one at all. He gets Joe to explain to the captain about his situation, and the captain accepts. He becomes a CSI at CCPD, and he does well, and doesn’t speak. His reports are a lot longer because of it, and sometimes people have to grab Joe or a spare talented officer to translate, but they respect his work and they respect him, and it works for Barry.

 

But he gets wind of a case down in Starling City, one where there are impossible things happening. He knows he shouldn’t, knows it’s a _horrible_ idea, knows there’s no way he’s gonna get away with it.

 

He goes anyway.

 

“The rest of the crew must have come in after him.” The man that looks like a manager says. Barry snorts. Loudly.

 

The group turns to look at him, the tall blonde and the badge raising their eyebrows at him.

 

“And you are?” Barry begins signing his name and job, but pauses, unsure if any of them can understand him. They all mostly look confused, the badge muttering something most definately foul as he walks off. The manager follows, leaving just tall blonde and...glasses? Barry feels a little rude calling her that, but it’s not like he’s voicing it to her. He’s surprised though, when tall blonde begins to sign back. It seems he’s a little rusty, but he seems to get everything out correctly.

 

_‘Who are you?’_

_‘I’m a CSI from Central. My name is Barry Allen.’_

 

The blonde pauses, and Barry steps closer--and oh shit is that _Oliver Queen?_ The man must see the moment it clicks in Barry’s head, because he’s smirking.

 

“So,” He says out loud, which Barry thinks is mostly for the woman’s benefit. “You don’t think it was a crew?”

 

Barry grins. This was going to be interesting.

 

.,.,.,.,.,..,.,.,..

 

He later learns glasses is named Felicity, and she’s an absolute _genius_. He wants to speak to her a lot more than he ends up being able to do from the notepad on his phone, but he’s glad to have met her either way. Oliver ends up calling CCPD, Barry knows he does, because he gets an angry text from Joe telling him to get his ass back to Central _immediately_ , but they still have a case to solve, and damn if Barry wasn’t anxious to at least get a _glimpse_ of the Starling City Vigilante. He gets as far as getting invited to a dance before he gets thwarted and receives a calmer (but still most certainly threatening) text from Captain Singh. He still goes to the dance, because he’s already at the door, and the next train doesn’t leave till 10, so he figures he has time to waste. He dances with Felicity a little, and talks to Oliver a lot, and even meets a young boy there with Oliver’s sister who knows some basic ASL. Oliver gets his bodyguard, Diggle, to drop him at the Train Station--only to find out the train had left almost twenty minutes ago. He huffs and drops to a bench, staring angrily at the clock. And then he gets shot with a dart and gets exactly what he’s been asking for--a look at the vigilante.

 

A lot of stuff goes down--he saves Oliver’s life, Oliver finds the suspect. Barry goes home.

 

He misses the cutoff line for STAR labs, but it’s okay, Iris manages to get in, and promises to tell him all about it. He sends a text to Felicity, because he knows she was suffering from the same thing he was, and she sends back a smiley and a heart.

  
And then he gets struck by lightning, and there is black.      


	2. Sprawl II (Chapter 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> S1E01 Part 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Another update! :)
> 
> I'm planning to try to make chapters sort of fit to the episodes, but probably all of them will be split into two parts of one episode because there is only so much writing I can do per day. 
> 
> Luckily I plan on updating 2-3 times a week though :) 
> 
> ALSO A BIG THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU WHO GAVE COMMENTS AND KUDOS, YOU ALL BROUGHT A HUGE GRIN TO MY FACE :)

When he comes to, he's terrified and grasping out for purchase. There's a man with a graphic tee and long hair that comes rushing over, speaking loud and fast in mild alarm. Barry is practically hyperventilating, simultaneously trying to rip off electrodes and pushing away the stranger. A woman comes running in, he can tell by the click of heels, and she begins speaking to him slowly in a calm voice.

 

“Mr. Allen? Mr. Allen, please calm down, you're safe here.”

 

Barry stills for a moment, still breathing hard. He looks at her with wide eyes, confused. He starts signing, and the two, presumably doctors, stare back with equally wide eyes. Where was he? And who were these people? Were Doctors allowed to wear Graphic Tees to work?

 

_‘who are you?’_

 

“Are..are you..?” The woman pipes up again.

 

Barry sighs and shakes his head. Then he slides two fingers down his throat and shakes his head again, maintaining eye contact this time.

 

“Oh, he can't speak.” The man--though he still looks younger than Barry--says. “Which is odd because your vocals look just--”

 

“ _Cisco_ ,” the woman interrupts.

 

“Sorry!” Cisco flinches, and Barry grins. “Uh, we uh, don't know sign language, but you can try some charade type motions? Oh man I bet you're great at char--”

 

“Cisco!” the woman sounds scandalized.

 

“Sorry!”

 

Barry smiles, grabbing Cisco’s arm to get his attention. When he turns, Barry gives him a thumbs up, hoping the guy knows it's all okay. Then, removing his hand, he lifts them halfway in the air, almost like he was shrugging off an answer he didn't know. Watching the pairs faces, he then pointed to each of them separately.

 

“Oh, who are we! Duh.” Cisco grins. “I'm Cisco Ramon, this is Dr. Caitlin Snow.”

 

Caitlin smiles kindly at him. Barry thinks she would be a good mother someday. He nodded, digesting the information and beginning to look around. It didn't look anything like any hospital he’d been in.

 

He lifts his right hand, moving his finger in a slow circle, motioning to the room.

 

“Where are we?” Caitlin confirms, and Barry nods. “Oh! This is STAR labs. You were struck by lightning nine months ago--”

 

Barry immediately scrambles the rest of the way off the bed, dashing for something-- _anything_ \--to contact Joe or Iris. Nine whole months--God, did they know where he was? Did they know he was okay? He was in a coma for nine months, they  _have_ to know where he is, right? It's not like he could go anywhere?

 

“Mr. Allen!” Snow shouts. Cisco runs up behind him looking a little too afraid to touch Barry. He realized how crazy he must look, wild eyes and messy hair. He was shaking, but he stopped, trying to regulate his breathing and  _calm_. Joe wouldn't have let anyone take him if it was dangerous, right? Oh God, but what if he had been kidnapped by mad scientists so they could experiment on him?

 

“Dude, just, please calm down, we’ll call Joe for you!” He pleads. Barry’s breathing heavily again, more out of fear than exhaustion. He’s still hesitant to listen, still needs to call Joe, and oh _god_ , Iris, but Cisco apparently knows Joe, so he stills. Ramon pulls out his phone, scrolling through a few people until he finds Joe and hits dial, eyes flicking to Barry with unease. Barry continues to wait, Caitlin watching him like a frightened deer. There’s a gruff voice over the phone, one that Barry _knows_ , and Cisco must see it, because he flips it to speaker phone.

 

“--better be important, kid.”

 

“Uh, yeah, hi Joe. Barry’s uh. Barry’s awake.”

 

There’s a clatter and some choking, before Joe’s voice is back over the line, sputtering that’d he’d be there in ten minutes. The phone hangs up abruptly, and Barry shrugs in on himself.

 

“Barry?” Caitlin tries, coming to where Cisco and Barry were standing. “Can..Can I call you that?” She asks tentatively. Barry nods, simultaneously rolling his eyes. He immediately feels bad when a look of hurt flashes in her eyes, and he can’t communicate what he meant. Cisco lights up though, tapping his phone a few more times before handing it over to Barry. It’s a blank, yellow screen, a cursor prompting instruction.

 

_‘thanks. I sometimes forget it’s hard to tell jokes when you're the only one who can hear it.’_

 

Cisco reads it to Caitlin, who begins to smile. “I see. Oh! We’ll have to page Dr. Wells--”

 

“No need, I’m right here.” The new voice turns Barry around, eyes wide when he faces Wells. The man is wheel-chair bound, it seems, but a smile graces his face anyway. “Glad to see you awake.”

 

Barry takes the phone back from Cisco, typing a simple _‘thank you for helping me’_ When he shows it to Wells, he waves it off, and, surprising all, signing back _‘you're welcome’_

 ' _It's an honor to meet you, sir.'_

 

_'I can't imagine that would apply nowadays, but it's appreciated anyway, Mr. Allen.'_

 

_‘You know ASL?’_

_‘Indeed. Joe warned me of your...predicament.’_

 

 _‘what did he tell you?_ ’ Barry’s posture had already gotten a bit defensive, Cisco and Caitlin watching in confusion.

 

“Guys...?” Cisco started, but Snow just jabbed him. “ _Ow_!” Another jab. “Stop that! I’m trying to--”

 

“Barry!” Barry looked up toward the entrance, immediately grinning ear to ear at Iris, Joe following close behind. She ran to greet him, Barry hugging back enthusiastically.

 

“Are you feeling okay?”

 

_‘Yes. Wells and the team took good care of me.’_

 

“Good.” She was still smiling, Joe stepping up behind her, nodding to the scientists.

 

“Hope you got one of those for me too, Barr.”

 

Barry let out a huff of laughter, opening his arms to the man. When they pulled away, Barry was immediately beginning to sign.

 

_‘Are you guys alright? I didn’t worry you too much, I hope.’_

 

“Barr, we’re always gonna worry about you, we’re family!” Iris gave him a hearty slap on his shoulder, Barry’s mouth open in silent laughter as he ducked away. They traded barbs and playful jabs, and spoke a little to Cisco and Caitlin.

 

“Detective West,” Wells maneuvered the chair to rest next to the man, watching Iris and Barry tease Cisco. “If it’s alright with you, I’d like to keep him overnight for observation.”

 

The question obviously surprised the detective, his brows raising. “He’s been cleared though, hasn’t he?”

 

“In theory, yes.”

 

“Then if it’s alright with you, I’d like to take my son home.” He stared down at the man, eyes narrowed and wary. Barry paused from his fun to look at the two, confused as to their scowling expressions. Joe looked awfully wary of Wells, especially since the man had just saved his life. Barry figured it was because of Joe's overprotective nature--which was nice, but really not needed.  
  


_‘Joe?’_

 

“It’s alright Barry. We’re going to gear up and head home, alright? I’m sure you’re absolutely starving.” He gave his son a grin, a warm hand finding it's way to Barry's shoulder. He gave him a light squeeze, as if affirming that  _yes, Barry is really here,_ before dropping his arm. 

 

_‘Only if we can stop at Big Belly Burger’_

 

Joe and Iris both laughed, the latter swinging an arm around Barry’s neck.

  
“Sure, Barr. We can get some Big Belly Burger.”

 

Wells gave Joe a side eye, but rolled closer to Barry, offering out a card. “If you need anything or something seems off, feel free to call.”

 

Barry nodded, accepting it with an awe struck smile.  _‘Thank you again, Dr.Wells. I really appreciate it.’_

 

“Just trying to help.”

 

‘-’-’--’--’

 

The walk to the car is loud, Iris chatting about the goings on of the last nine months, and Barry still can’t wrap his head around it. It seemed like an hour ago he was in his lab, anticipating the Particle Accelerators ignition. And oh, God, he should text Felicity, let her know he’s okay--although, she probably already knows. Regardless, he motions to borrow Iris’s phone, opening a new message when she hands it over.

 

_‘Hey Felicity, It’s Barry. I’m using Iris’ phone because mine is...somewhere.’_

He receives a call less than three seconds later--one that hangs up within two rings.

_‘Oh my god I’m sorry I forgot I just--are you okay!?!?!’_

_‘Yeah, I’m alright. Getting struck by lightning isn’t nearly as cool as they make it in the movies.’_

_‘Holy cow Barry.’_

_‘I visited you a couple of times. I would have more but Ollie keeps getting in trouble and...’_

_‘I get it, Felicity, he needs you. Don’t worry about it.’_

_‘But thank you for visiting :)’_

 

“Who are you texting already?” Iris inquires, trying to peer at the screen from the passenger’s seat. Barry huffs, but smiles.

 

_‘A friend from Starling.’_

 

“A friend? Oh, or a _friend?_ ” Iris grins, winking playfully.

 

Barry turns red, shaking his head. _‘It’s not like that! She’s just a friend, I wanted to let her know I was okay.’_

 

“Uh-huh, whatever you say, Barr.”

 

“He's in a coma and he has more game than me.” Joe gruffs, peering into the rear-view. “I don’t need you running off with some girl now, you hear me Barr? I just got you back!”

 

His face remains tomato red, but his expression sobers a bit. _‘I’m not going anywhere if I can help it.’_  Iris relays this to Joe. It’s quiet for a beat, two, Iris and Joe’s joking attitude also growing solemn. They drive in silence for a grand total of ten minutes before Joe pulls up to a Big Belly Burger drive thru, leaning his head into the back seat.

 

“Hey, what do you want from triple B?”

 

_‘God, I feel like I could eat the entire menu twice over!’_

 

Iris laughs at him, flicking his knee. “Lord knows you need it! You’d probably fit in my clothes better than _I_ do!”

  
Barry just sticks his tongue out at her, and for a minute, it’s like everything bad that’s happened doesn’t exist. He has Iris, and Joe. He has his family, his best friend with him, and he doesn’t feel sad. It’s not that he’s always depressed or anything, but...Moments like this? They were becoming harder and harder to find. Harder by his own account, falling fast and hard for Iris when he was a kid, but he couldn’t help it. She was one of the only people that made him feel happy, made him feel safe when he was afraid. He just wished it would last. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Righty. So I know this was a ton of dialogue, but I plan to get the ball rolling with the major content of Episode 1 and Barry realizing his powers and whatnot. 
> 
> Also with the IrisxBarry thing--don't worry, it's not gonna get to that point--this is a coldflash fic afterall--but it is something that exist(s)(ed) in canon, so I'm trying to keep somewhat in line with that. I dunno if it will turn out like that, but hey!
> 
> Also with the canon, I just mean I'll be following the story line within episodes, not that everything that happens in an episode will happen in the story (That would be really boring)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my gosh guys I'm so sorry I have no excuse for why I took so long T-T   
> hopefully this makes up for it! We finally wrap up episode one! 
> 
> From there it'll still have some canon elements but it won't be word for word.

Of course, it didn't. 

 

Barry ended up going back to the station the next day--he was feeling fine after all--only to run into Iris kissing some Blonde detective in one of the lesser used hallways that led to his lab. 

 

He stood, almost frozen to the spot with regret and sadness, and maybe just a little bit of  _ anger _ . Iris pulled away first, immediately spotting Barry. 

 

“Oh God, Barry!” she completely steps back from the man, who, once turned around, was revealed as Eddie. Barry didn’t wait for an explanation, backing out quickly down the stairs and out the side door where they kept the cruisers. He wasn’t really in the mood to work after that, so he quickly began to jog down the alley--only to find himself whipped across the street. 

 

_ What the hell!?!  _

 

He looked down at his hands, which were still violently shaking, in wonder. 

 

_ “If you need something or anything feels off, feel free to call.”  _

 

Call, huh? There was no point in texting a landline, and it’s not like he could speak over the phone anyway, and he’d need a car to get there....unless...Barry grinned, beginning to run again. Within an instant, he felt that same lurch in his stomach, and he whipped halfway across the city, right to the door of STAR Labs. As freaked out as he was, Barry was also pretty fascinated by the fact that he had  _ super speed _ . Hah! The irony! All those times he couldn’t get away from bullies as a kid, and now he was the fastest man alive. He stared at the entrance a little longer, almost hesitant to enter. One of the benefits of not having to speak was being able to observe--and Barry definately noticed the mistrust Joe had of Harrison Wells. But truth be told, Barry thought to himself as he entered STAR labs, he was pretty sure it was because he blamed what happened to Barry on Wells--with the particle accelerator causing a freak storm and all that. But Barry couldn’t find it in himself to blame the man--he was trying to make a difference. If the accelerator had worked, it would have exposed a whole new wave of science and the way things worked. Did it instead put Barry in a coma? Yeah. But hey--he was alive, and  _ had freaking super speed _ ! 

 

“Mr. Allen,” A voice called, most definitely from the PA system. “If you were waiting for an invitation, I believe this is it.” Wells spoke, calm and collected as always. Barry grinned, giving a cheeky wave to the camera before walking at a normal pace inside the building. 

 

When he got to the cortex, Cisco, Caitlin, and Wells were all there, each in various states of focus on their tasks. Cisco looked up first. 

 

“Hey man! Didn’t think we’d see you back here!” He says jovially. Caitlin rolls her eyes. 

 

“Ignore him.” She doesn’t smile, not even a grin, but she twitches her lips at him. “Is everything alright?” 

 

Barry presses his lips thin, rubbing at the back of his neck awkwardly. At the tense eyes of the two scientists, he finally pulls out his phone--only to be interrupted by Wells.    
  
“No need, Barry. I can translate for them.” 

 

He nods, beginning to sign at Wells. ‘ _ Something happened today, when I got upset. I started running and ended up on the other side of the block in a blink of an eye.’  _

 

As Wells translated, Cisco looked increasingly impressed, Caitlin just looking weary. 

 

‘ _ I thought about your offer to help...and I ran to STAR labs from the police station in no more than a second.’  _

 

“But the police station is almost twelve miles from here!” Cisco gaped. 

 

“I see.” Wells looked at Barry for what must have been a solid minute, and he squirmed under his gaze. Finally, he spoke again. “Well, Mr. Allen. If you wouldn’t mind, I think we’d like to see this for ourselves.” 

 

.,.,..,...,,...,.,.,.,.,.,.

 

They take him to the back of STAR labs, where endless concrete lay out before him. 

 

‘This looks more like a runway than the backyard of a major laboratory.’ He signed to Wells. The man twitched a smile at Barry. 

 

“Very observant. Before I purchased the land for STAR labs, it belonged to a company planning to build an airport. As you can see, that didn’t quite happen.” 

 

Barry nods, and Cisco leads him over to a trailer.    
  
“I have a prototype suit that can hopefully withstand the friction you’d generate while running; it’s in here.” Cisco jams his thumb behind him. “When you finish getting changed, we’ll make sure the vital readers are working alright, and you’ll be off!” He grins at Barry, and damn if Barry doesn’t grin back. This was going to be awesome. 

 

.,.,.,..,.,.,.,.,.,

 

It was not nearly as awesome as he wanted. He ended up getting distracted, memories of his mother assaulting him in blinding lights, and he ends up crashing and breaking his arm. Normally he wouldn’t really be as worried--it doesn’t affect his job too much, he always has the option of hand writing his reports instead of typing--no, the part he’s worried about is how he’ll be able to communicate. He can still talk, he knows he can because he can still laugh, but the pain of it.....really isn’t very appealing to him. So, he thinks as Caitlin resets his bone and he bites his tongue to hold a scream back, he’s royally fucked.

 

Three hours later it’s healed. 

 

“This is pretty incredible, Barry.” Caitlin says, and for once doesn’t have a blank look on her face. She looks rather fascinated. “We don’t know what other side effects your speed has, but imagine what we could do if we could harness your DNA! Injuries that keep labor workers off jobs for months can be healed in less than a day!” 

 

“Mm.” Wells agrees. “And judging by these samples, it looks like your white blood cells are augmented. For all we know you could be completely impervious to disease.” 

 

“Well, if there’s ever a zombie apocalypse, I know who I’m putting on my team as the runner.” Cisco grinned, Barry just huffing an amused breath. Wells just gave the scientist a look. “What? No humor between co-workers?” 

 

“Barry is a lot of things, but he’s not a co-worker. This isn’t some vigilante organisation like the Starling City vigilante has going on.” Wells pointed out. 

 

_ Oliver. I totally forgot.  _

 

It was silent, Cisco looking away in slight embarrassment, Caitlin back to a void expression, and Wells aggressively impassive. Barry didn’t say anything, but that statement made him feel uneasy. He had this incredible power--by accident maybe--but shouldn’t he be using them to help people? To do more than mix chemicals and dust for prints all day? Shouldn’t he be out there, doing some  _ real _ good? 

 

_ Uh.  _ ‘Thanks for helping out. I have to meet Iris for lunch, so I’ll see you later.’ Barry motioned, practically at superspeed, and zipped off before anyone else could say a word. Looking at his phone, he realized Iris had been texting him non stop. Figured. He texted her back, a quick ‘Central Park, 20 min’, and promptly shut his phone off. He didn’t need the added distractions. 

 

.,.,,.,,

 

He met her right on time, walking silently behind her before tapping her shoulder. She jumped a bit, whirling to face him. The moment she saw him, her face went tight and pained.    
  


“Barry...” She breathed. 

 

‘It’s fine, you don’t have to explain.’ 

 

“Bar...he’s a good guy. He took Joe’s shifts so he could stay with you while you were in the hospital for those first few months.” 

 

Barry just nodded, silent as ever. Iris looked at him, almost pitying.  “Barry?” 

 

‘Does Joe know you’re dating his partner?’ 

 

“No. And I need it to stay that way, Barry, please.” She sighed. “Look, it’s not going to be forever...just until we figure out how serious this is. No need getting dad in a tizzy over something that may not last.” 

 

‘I don’t know about that.’ He signed, still refusing to look her in the eyes. Fuck, he was so screwed. 

 

“What do you mean?” Iris halted at the end of the sidewalk. Barry watched the cars pass with a growing unease. 

 

‘The way he looks at you Iris....It’s hard to say he isn’t already in love.’ 

 

Iris observed Barry awhile longer, squinting like she knew something Barry didn’t. She opened her mouth to say something, maybe to tell Barry off, but she was cut off by sirens and the squealing of tires. He didn’t even think, grabbing Iris and whisking her a block away, immediately running after the car. He managed to catch up way easier than he thought, sliding into the car’s passenger seat. One look at the driver and he knew.  _ Mardon _ . He didn’t say anything, grabbing at the wheel for control of the car. Mardon snarled, hissing out a curse at him and yanking the wheel back and flipping the car. Barry got out fast--but it seemed Mardon did too. Staggering to a standing position, he glanced around. There was fog  _ everywhere _ . Completely out of nowhere. Then he noticed Mardon, standing in the middle of it with straining fingers and an irate expression. And then he struck, a blast of wind knocking Barry off his feet, and he was gone. 

 

.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.

 

‘Joe.’ Barry greeted, standing beside Iris. 

 

“What are you two even doing out here! I told you to be careful.” Joe cornered them in the tunnel. He gave Iris a look, to which she quickly scampered off toward Eddie, throwing Barry an apologetic look. 

 

‘It’s not like I knew he was going to be out here, Joe. You know I wouldn’t try to get Iris killed.’ 

 

“Doesn’t make me worry any less.” He grumbled. “You saw the guy?” 

 

Barry nodded, slowly. ‘Joe...you’re not going to believe this. It was Mardon.’ 

 

Joe’s already dim expression grew almost toxic. “You wanna do this? Right now?” He raised his voice a little, Iris looking over nervously. “We’ve been over this, Barry. Mardon is dead, these impossible things you’ve been chasing--”

 

‘Joe’

 

“--don’t exist! And I tried to help you, I took you in, son, but this needs to stop! Mardon is dead! The man in the lightning doesn’t exist, and dead men don’t come back to life! Get that into your head!” He finished, practically growling. A hurt look flashed on Barry’s face, and he did the only thing he could--he got the hell out of there. 

 

Eddie slunk toward Joe, a cautious look on his face. “Joe.”

 

“Did you interview the other witnesses?”

 

Eddie nodded. “Yeah. We have a sketch artist down here, and you’re not going to believe this.” He held the photo up. “It’s Mardon.” 

  
  


.,.,.,.,.,,.,.,.,

 

When he arrives at the labs, Wells isn’t there. He finds Cisco in the cortex, fiddling with a computer, Caitlin in the upper level cortex doing tests on what he assumes is his blood. He taps Cisco on the shoulder when he gets close enough. The man shrieks, whipping around toward Barry. 

 

“Dios Mios! You scared the shit out of me man! Why do you walk so quiet!?” He says in a single breath. Barry rolls his eyes, lips twitching in amusement. He grabs a pad of paper and a pen from the left of Cisco, scribbling. 

 

_ I’d be no good at hide and seek if I stomped all the time.  _  Barry pauses, squinting at Cisco.  _ Do...do you want me to teach you and Caitlin sign language? _

 

Cisco grins, practically ear to ear. “We’ve already started learning! We figured we’d be working with you more, so I mentioned it to Caitlin....”   
  
Her heels click as she steps down into the lower cortex with the two men. “Of course we want to make the effort to communicate with you just as much as you do to us.” She gave a rare smile, though her eyes were still dull. 

 

Barry knew his own eyes were wide, a surprised and heartfelt smile on his face. He was nervous to come here at first, but with their reactions toward him...He was suddenly filled with confidence, snatching the pad once again and writing with super speed. 

 

_ I need your guys’ help. I know Wells said I wasn’t some sort of vigilante....but I want to help. There’s others out there, like me. Clyde Mardon can control the weather, I just ran into him today. The police aren’t going to be able to handle that. They need help. Will you help me? _

 

It was quiet a moment as they read, Cisco’s face beginning to glow, while Caitlin regained some life to her pale cheeks. 

 

“Barry....this is going to be dangerous, you realize? And we’re not going to be able to communicate with you when you’re out in the field.” Caitlin pointed out, frowning, but eyes beginning to gain a spark of something. Hope, maybe? He nodded, signing a word that he hoped they would know. 

 

‘ _ Please.’ _

 

Cisco absolutely beamed. “I may have a solution for that, Caitlin!” He jumped up, typing something quickly into the computer. “Barry, you know morse code?” 

 

_ Uh, just enough for an SOS _ . He wrote. 

 

“Okay, we can get there. SOS will be okay for a little, but the longer we do this, the more complications we’ll face. So......” He snatched a tablet then, walking over to a closed wall portion. “This suit was originally designed for firefighters--it’s a tri polymer blend that should be able to withstand the friction you generate while running--and it’s got vitals and a comms system, as well as a pinhole camera attached to the side of the comms.” Cisco was babbling, he knew he was, but he was excited as they opened the wall panel. He wanted to help just as much as Barry--and even if it was helping  _ through _ Barry. 

 

“Don’t forget this, Cisco.” Caitlin twitched her lips, handing the scientist a small circular device with a lightening bolt sticking out proudly. His eyes lit up as he took it gently, sticking it to the front of the suit. 

 

_ ‘What’s it for?’  _  Barry signed. He knew it was soon--they couldn’t have taken more than one class, but it was a simple enough sentence. Both STAR scientists paused a moment, Cisco mouthing something to himself. 

 

“I didn’t quite get it all...” Caitlin started. “But I think he asked what it....is?” 

 

‘ _ f o r’ _ he signed in alphabet letters, hoping they at least covered that. 

 

“Oh, for.” Cisco provided. “It’s mostly decoration--although we also put a GPS tracker to ensure that if the camera’s down or you can’t communicate, we can find out where you are and send help.” 

 

Barry nodded, smiling again. Then, clicking the pen, wrote again.  _ Let’s get started. Can you track weather patterns? _

  
  


.,.,.,,.,,.,.,.,,.

 

When he found Mardon, the criminal had Joe and Eddie cornered against Joe’s car, a tornado picking up. He clicked the side of his head where the camera was, immediately getting gasps from Caitlin and Cisco. 

 

“Barry, that’s fast approaching an F5 tornado, you need to stop it.” 

 

Barry’s  _ how _ went unsaid. 

 

“You’d have to run 700 miles per hour in the counterclockwise direction of the tornado, Barry.” 

 

700mph, huh? He didn’t wait for confirmation on whether or not he could handle it, immediately speeding into the tornado. Cisco and Caitlin were still chattering in his ear--Caitlin arguing that it’d break him, Cisco insisting he  _ could _ do it--but he made it in the ring of the tornado, trying to cut it off at the base. Which went well, until Mardon got a lucky shot with a bolt of lightning. He gasped in pain, flung out of the tornado in a flash of light. 

 

“Barry!” Caitlin yelled in his ear. “Barry, are you alright?” 

 

He felt himself nodded, but he still couldn’t find it in him to stand. What if he couldn’t stop this? Could he really just not be fast enough?  All this time, being picked on as a kid, being dissected by the media after his father was sentenced, after Iris chose Eddie, after he got super speed...and he still just wasn’t...enough? 

 

“You can do this, Barry.” A new voice came on the comms, startling him. “You were right, Barry. These powers? You should be using them for good. This  is my fault. I created these metahumans, I’m responsible for all those hurt, all those people that are using these powers for evil. But you, Barry, you’re special. When I look at you, I see hope. Hope for the people of this city, hope for the _future_ _of the world_. Now run, Barry, run!” 

 

Barry shot forward, once again circling the tornado. But it wasn’t going to be like last time. He pushed himself harder, faster than he had even at STAR labs. He knew he had to stop Mardon, but..maybe he wanted to prove something to himself, too. He ran until the lightning in his blood was singing, until finally, the tornado had choked out, leaving Mardon standing, back turned to Barry. His cowl had blown off in the burst of air the dying tornado had spat out. 

 

“Heh,” He scoffed, turning to face Barry. “I didn’t think there was anyone else like me.” 

 

Barry  _ almost _ responded, almost began making furious motions with his hands--but he couldn’t. He couldn’t let this man get more than his face, much less that he was mute. He shook his head instead, sneering at the man. Mardon sneered right back, raising a gun that--how did Barry miss that? He had no doubt he could escape the bullet, but he found himself frozen to the spot. Mardon pulled back the hammer and-- _ BANG _ . Barry whirled around, Joe less than fifteen feet and fast approaching. Mardon, a shell shocked look on his face, stood still a moment, then crumpled to the ground. As soon as he was safe, he shut the comms and camera off. He liked the team well enough, but he got the feeling this conversation was something he needed to keep to himself.

 

“Barry?” Joe knelt. 

 

‘ _ I’m okay.’ _

 

“Shit son...I’m...I’m so sorry, Barry.” 

 

‘ _ Joe, it’s fine, let’s just move on-’  _

 

“I can’t move on, Bar. Not until I say something first.” His foster father took a deep breath, kneeling down beside Barry. “ I'm sorry, Barry. I'm sorry I didn't believe you, and I called you crazy for chasing the impossible. But you really did see something that night your mom died. And your dad is innocent.” He paused again, eyes closing. “I need you to promise me something. I don't want you telling Iris about anything you can do. Any of it. I want her safe. Promise me.”

 

Barry frowned, and he knew Joe could tell he didn’t like a bit of it, but he understood. At least, he thought he did. Barry didn’t want anything to happen to Iris as much as Joe or Eddie did, but keeping a secret like this from his best friend? He was so dead if she ever found out. But he did the only thing he could--he nodded. 

 

“Thank you.” Joe breathed. “Now, let’s get you home.”

 

.,.,.,.,.,

 

‘ _ So. That’s my story. I spent my life searching for impossible things....and I became one.’ _

 

Oliver looked at him speculatively. “So why come to me? Something tells me you didn’t just run 600 miles to say hi to a friend.” 

 

_ ‘I want to do more, Ol. But my first time out and I already...Someone died, Oliver. How am I supposed to help people when I can’t even keep them from getting killed? I don’t think I can be like you. I don’t think I can be some vigilante.’ _

 

“If you do this, you’re going to make mistakes, that’s the first thing you have to realize. I still make them after all this time.” Arrow glances at the streets, then back to his friend with a small, soft smile. “But I think you can be someone who inspires. I think you can be Central’s guardian angel, saving people.... in a flash.” He turns then, back to Barry, and looses an arrow into the next building over. “Oh, and Barry?” Oliver looks at him over his shoulder, giving him a rare, true smile. “Good luck.” He jumps. 

  
.,.,.,.,.,.,.,,.,.,.,..,...

**Author's Note:**

> So, if it didn't really click, Barry got pretty bad PTSD from watching his mother's death, and sometimes a side effect is going mute--something that can be overcome--but serious nonetheless. Yes, he can still speak, hence the ability to laugh and whatnot, he just doesn't want to at this point.
> 
> If you'd like, my tumblr is [Nothingtoshowforit](http://nothingtoshowforit.tumblr.com)


End file.
